SRIKAKULAM: Chief Minister YS Jagan Mohan Reddy will lay the foundation stone for Bhavanapadu Port in Srikakulam district on April 19. The district administration has been preparing the ground for the foundation stone ceremony in a grand manner by clearing all the hurdles pertaining to land acquisition and Rehabilitation and Resettlement (R&R). Andhra Pradesh Maritime Board (APMB) has finalized the tenders for Phase-1 works to Vishwa Samudra Group with Rs 3,600 crore as per the new detailed project report (DPR).
In 2012, the government had planned to construct a non-major port at Bhavanapadu village in Srikakulam district, with a capacity to handle 10 million tons of cargo per annum, to improve the livelihood of the fisher folk as well as the district. Though the previous government led by N Chandrababu Naidu tried to start the project in collaboration with the Adani Group, the plans did not materialise. Subsequently, YSRC came into power in 2019 and set up Bhavanapadu Port Development Corporation Limited under the supervision of the APMB to execute the project.
The APMB has come up with a new detailed project report (DPR) by reducing the land to 2,217 from 5,000 acres. APMB shifted the port to Vishnuchakram and Mulapeta villages from Bhavanapadu village. Though the construction of the port was proposed at Bhavanapadu village previously, it was shifted to Mulapeta and Vishnuchakram villages in Santabommali Mandal as per the new DPR. Therefore, Bhavanapadu village could not be a part of the port.
Now as per the new DPR, the district administration has cut at least 326 acres of land from these two villages. They have also been constructing the rehabilitation colony in Nowpada in Santhabommali mandal with an estimated cost of Rs 80 crore. At least 600 families from Mulapeta and Vishnuchakram will shift to the R&R colony. In the meanwhile, APMB has reportedly accorded the environmental clearance for the construction of the port at Mulapeta.
Therefore, APMB has been preparing the ground to lay the foundation stone for Mulapeta Port (Bhavanapadu Port) on April 19. Speaking to the media, animal husbandry minister S Appalaraju said, “Bhavanapadu port is a three-decades dream of the Srikakulam people. One of the long pending projects in the Srikakulam district will come into reality soon. Vishwa Samudra Group has won the bidding for Bhavanapadu port Phase-1 works as per the new DPR with Rs 3,600 crore.”
“We have completed the land acquisition and R&R for the construction of the port. As per the new DPR, the port will be constructed at Mulapeta. The port will change the face of the district. It will also help in the development of the district as well as the State,’’ he added.